Conspiracy theorist Scott C Waring says this strangely shaped rock is an Ancient Egyptian sarcophagus on Mars. Scott used photo-editing tools to colour the object, which he spotted in a Nasa photo of the red planetCredit: ET Data Base

Scott, whose prolific posts on his website UFO Sightings Daily have won him a sizeable online following, believes his "discovery" proves that Ancient Egyptians came from Mars.

"I've got an interesting discovery on Mars that is going to rock archaeology," Scott said in a YouTube video about the find.

"There is an Ancient Egyptian tomb of sorts carved into the side of this mountain on Mars.

"Are ancient Egyptians from Mars? Did they then move to Egypt? Egypt is very similar in appearance and weather to that of Mars. No other place on Earth looks much like Mars."

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Scott believes his "discovery" proves the Ancient Egyptians came from Mars. Pictured is the sarcophagus of King Tutankhamen

Scott identified the mysterious object in a photo of Mars taken in 2007 by Nasa's Opportunity rover.

According to Nasa, the image shows rock layers and formation on the cliff of Cape St. Vincent in Mars’ Victoria Crater.

Scott used photo-editing tools to highlight what he says are Ancient Egyptian artefacts visible in the picture.

As well as the "sarcophagus", Scott claims to have found carvings of faces, unfinished statues and "alien technology" that he thinks was left behind by Martians.

"Isn't this just amazing, it really looks like an Egyptian tomb carved into the side of a Mars mountain," he said.

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As well as a "sarcophagus", Scott claims to have found unfinished statues left behind by "Martians"Credit: ET Data Base

"It appears to have eye, nose, a chin and a very extended forehead, which may have occupied a more enhanced brain."

Scott's claims are not backed up by scientific evidence – space scientists have not found any clues that there is, or ever was, intelligent life on Mars.

Alien expert Nigel Watson, author of UFOs of the First World War, said Waring's comments were a "stretch of the imagination".

"I think it takes a lot of imagination to see a sarcophagus in these rock formations," he told The Sun.

"To also deduce that it is 'Egyptian' and that it was created by beings who later came to Earth - where they presumably brought their skills to building the pyramids - is an even bigger stretch of the imagination that takes us into the world of fantasy rather than fact."

The find is more likely the result of pareidolia, a bizarre effect which causes the brain to see shapes, structures and patterns where they do not exist.

According to Nasa: "Pareidolia is the psychological phenomenon where people see recognisable shapes in clouds, rock formations, or otherwise unrelated objects or data.

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Scott identified the mysterious object in a photo of Mars taken in 2007 by Nasa's Opportunity rover. According to Nasa, the image shows rock layers and formation on the cliff of Cape St. Vincent in Mars’ Victoria CraterCredit: Nasa

Mars facts

Here's what you need to know about the red planet...

Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun

It is named after the Roman god of war

The landmass of Mars is very similar to Earth but due to the difference in gravity you could jump three times higher there than you can here

Mars is mountainous and hosts the tallest mountain known in the Solar System called Olympus Mons, which is three times higher than Everest

Mars is considered to be the second most habitable planet after Earth

It takes the planet 687 Earth days to orbit the Sun

So far, there has been 39 missions to Mars but only 16 of these have been successful

"There are many examples of this phenomenon on Earth and in space."

This is not the first time Scott has made outrageous claims about space snaps.

Back in April, he claimed to have found an alien sculpture of a nude woman on a distant asteroid.

In March, Scott even said he'd found a carving of the Ancient Greek philosopher Socrates on a mound on Mars.

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